Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e5/2. Nf3/2...d6/3. d4/3...Nc6

Philidor Defence
a b c d e f g h
8a8 black rookb8 black kingc8 black bishopd8 black queene8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black knighth8 black rook8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black kinge7 black kingf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawn7
6a6 black kingb6 black kingc6 black knightd6 black pawne6 black kingf6 black kingg6 black kingh6 black king6
5a5 black kingb5 black kingc5 black kingd5 black kinge5 black pawnf5 black kingg5 black kingh5 black king5
4a4 black kingb4 black kingc4 black kingd4 white pawne4 white pawnf4 black kingg4 black kingh4 black king4
3a3 black kingb3 black kingc3 black kingd3 black kinge3 black kingf3 white knightg3 black kingh3 black king3
2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 black kinge2 black kingf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawn2
1a1 white rookb1 white knightc1 white bishopd1 white queene1 white kingf1 white bishopg1 black kingh1 white rook1
a b c d e f g h
Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN)
Moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nc6

3...Nc6

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This move is uncommon, as the pin 4. Bb5 is annoying, yet, White is only a little better.

Another popular choice for White is 4. dxe5, which is best met with 4...Nxe5 or 4...dxe5. Either way, Black will lose castling rights after Qxd8+.

Stockfish prefers 4. d5, which attacks the knight and forces it to move backwards.

Various transpositions are possible:

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